Butternut Squash and Sweet Potato Lasagna

While this recipe may sound similar to the pumpkin and goat cheese lasagna I posted a few months ago, it actually has quite a different flavor and texture. It's less creamy and rich and more vibrant  - and just as delicious.

The picture does not quite do this justice (it's so hard to take a pretty picture of lasagna!) but it really is quite a nice recipe. Make sure you don't overdo the cheese, because the mascarpone already contributed a fair amount of far and cheesiness to the mix.

Butternut Squash and Sweet Potato Lasagna 

 Ingredients (for 3-4 entree sized portions, or 1 lasagna dish 8'x8', 20x20 cm): 

- 1 pack of lasagna noodles, of the kind you don't need to precook (you may not need the whole pack, but better safe than sorry). 

- 1/2 medium butternut squash, cut into small cubes (You can replace this with some butternut squash puree)

- 2 medium sweet potatoes, cubed (You can replace this with some sweet potato puree) 

- 12 oz/340 grams of mascarpone or ricotta cheese

- 3 tbsp (15 grams) butter

- 1 small onion, finely chopped

- 3 cloves of garlic, minced

- 1 1/2 cup of freshly grated parmesan 

- 1/2 cup shredded mozzarella 

- salt, pepper to taste 

- a bit of olive oil for drizzling or olive oil spray 

 Preparation: 

1. Prepare the orange filling: Preheat oven to 350 F/175 C. Place the squash and potato cubes on a baking tin. Spray or drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Toss to coat in the oil and seasoning. Bake in the oven for about 40-50 minutes, until the cubes are quite tender. Allow to cool and then mash with a fork or handheld blender into a smooth mash. (If you are using purees, combine the potato and squash purees with each other and season slightly). Leave the oven warm.

2. Prepare the mascarpone filling: Melt the butter in a small skillet over low-medium heat. Add the onion and garlic and cook for a few minutes, until they are soft and fragrant. In a bowl combine the mascarpone or ricotta, the butter/onion mixture and 3/4 cups of the parmesan until relatively smooth and spreadable. Season with salt and pepper. 

3. Build your lasagna: spray a small lasagna pan (see sizes above) with a bit of nonstick spray. Spread a few tablespoons of the squash filling onto the pan (not too much, just to wet it a bit) and cover with lasagna noodles. Top the noodles with half of the remaining squash puree and spread (you may need to use your fingers to get good coverage here). Top with half of the mascarpone mixture and spread. Make sure the noodles are well covered. Top with half of the remaining parmesan and half of the mozzarella. Cover this with another layer of lasagna noodles, then top with the remaining squash, remaining mascarpone, and remaining shredded cheeses. Again, make sure the noodles are fully covered, or they will be crunchy. Bake for about 45 minutes, or until the cheese on top is golden and bubbly. 

Enjoy!